It was goofy enough seeing men approaching their 40s performing as the New Kids on the Block when the '80s boy band reunited in 2008. But what made it really ridiculous were the sexually-charged lyrics on its comeback album, "The Block." The boys (er, men) sang about giving ladies some "Grown Man," and "Full Service" used the unsexy task of filling up at a gas station as a metaphor for coitus.

Well, the boys (sorry, men) are even older now, so the eager carnal elements have been swapped out for more serious romantic fare on its new album, "10." Theoretically, that would be the right call, but there's a problem with that transition. As ludicrous as the songs on "The Block" were, they were still a blast, the work of boys thrilled to be back in the game. That same spirit can be found in "10" single "Remix (I Like The)." Dumb title aside, it's a zesty track about a girl transforming from "wallpaper to heartbreaker" set atop a blend of retro grooves and modern pop hooks. But most of "10" is heavy on boring, slow-to-mid-tempo ballads with forgettable melodies, generic lyrics and middle-of-the-road vocals. The Kids have finally grown up, and they lost their sense of fun along the way.

The third track on "My Shame Is True," the ninth studio album from Chicago's Alkaline Trio, is titled "I'm Only Here to Disappoint." But there's no disappointment to be found on the album. On the contrary, it's impressive that after nearly 20 years, the band still sounds so urgent and lively, with vivid lyrics about longing and love lost. The single "I Wanna Be a Warhol" is a standout in that regard, using art as an apt metaphor for the need to mean something to someone.

"My Shame Is True" bursts with the kind of energy you'd expect from a band trying to make an impression with its very first track. That said, the power-pop punk guitar hooks, grand as they are, tend to repeat themselves. They also take some interesting detours. "Only Love" incorporates sensitive piano, while "Young Lover" has a wistful guitar hook that's more Coldplay than Green Day.

Southern soul rocker JJ Grey and his band Mofro are so omnipresent-they've released seven albums since 2001, and last year Turner Hall hosted both a concert and a screening of a concert film-that it's pretty easy to take it for granted. But its latest album "This River," its first studio album since 2010 (that's a pretty long gap for these guys), is a good reminder of what makes the band special. Customary of the Florida group's style, it's one big zesty gumbo pot of funk, soul, blues, Southern rock and R&B. "Somebody Else" has full-bodied Stax Records-style horns, and opener "Your Lady, She's Shady" takes a surprising left turn, opting for light sax-led funk grooves just when you expect it to bust into a heavy blues rock breakdown.

With a light twang in her voice and a sweet handling of the fiddle, Canadian artist April Verch proves herself to be a rich interpreter of Appalachian-style folk tunes on her latest album "Bright Like Gold." She'd fit right in on "Prairie Home Companion" and with Alison Krauss and company on the "O Brother" soundtrack. "Gold" brings a spit shine to traditionals like "Evening Star Waltz" and "Big Eyed Rabbit," as well as a spunky cover of Loretta Lynn's "Don't Come Home a Drinkin.'" But it's a testament to Verch's talent that originals like the smitten "The Only One" and remorseful "Broken," whose pain is softened by the rootsy arrangement, blend in so easily with older material. And "Raven in the Hemlock," Cody Walter's banjo-driven instrumental, would fit perfectly on an episode of FX's Kentucky lawman adventure series "Justified." That show's music supervisor needs to seriously get Verch's phone number.

Charles Bradley was abandoned as a child, experienced periods of homelessness and poverty, and worked odd jobs as he pursued his dream of being a soul singer. The difficulty of maintaining that dream can be summarized with two dates: He was born in 1948; his first album, "No Time for Dreaming," came out in 2011.

If Bradley is bitter about the past, it doesn't show on his second album, "Victim of Love." His voice is raw and aching with the same throaty pleasure Otis Redding and his chief inspiration, James Brown, brought to the microphone.

The music, co-written and played by the Menahan Street Band, also reaches back to the golden R&B era Redding and Brown inhabited. "You Put the Flame on It" neatly rewrites "The Way You Do the Things You Do," while "Confusion" and "Hurricane" recall the incendiary, socially conscious grooves - fast and slow, respectively - of the early 1970s. Bradley juices all of it with the vibe of a grateful man.

During the mid-1990s, Kenny Roby seemed ready to ascend to the alt-country Mount Olympus where the Jayhawks and Uncle Tupelo resided. Then his band, 6 String Drag, broke up after only two albums, and his solo career has been sporadic: His fourth solo album, "Memories & Birds," comes seven years after his third.

It's a deceptively low-key record, much more likely to employ gentle strings than rowdy guitars, and featuring vocals that place Roby even closer to Randy Newman and late-period Elvis Costello than he was already.

Yet beneath the graceful tempos and washed-out colors of songs like the dark "Colorado" and the brassily depressed "Tired of Being in Love" lie rich tales of men, women and children facing hard truths as best they can and with as much hope or hurt as they can muster. Roby sings their stories with respect; he obviously lives near them.

In the midst of the sweet country harmonies and tender love on The Band Perry's 2010 self-titled breakthrough debut, lead singer Kimberly Perry revealed a couple of moments of impassioned betrayal. Yet the bitter contempt of that album's platinum-selling single, "You Lie," doesn't come close to the lyrical wrath she unleashes on the sibling trio's sophomore release.

Already a chart-topping single, the banjo-backed murder-suicide tale of "Better Dig Two" is just the opening salvo. On "Done," she vocally slaps a game-playing lover, snarling "Mama always told me that I should play nice/ But she didn't know you when she gave me that advice."

In the arena-rock strains of "Forever Mine Nevermind," the blows are physical. Over riffing fiddles, she uses the song "Chainsaw" to cut down a carved reminder of a broken relationship. It's all a hearty blend of southern sounds, electric rock and scorned love.

There are points where the thematic passion gives way to softer perspectives: The acoustic strings and vocal harmonies on the title track are beautiful, whereas "Mother Like Mine" is a bit saccharine. But revenge for betrayal is the real game on "Pioneer," and The Band Perry plays it well.